Newly Elected Texas Congressman Sylvester Turner Passes Away Suddenly
Texas Congressman and former Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner has passed away suddenly at the age of 70, just two months after taking office.
Houston’s current Mayor, John Whitmire, announced Turner’s passing during a city council meeting on Wednesday, March 5, according to local news reports.
Whitmire stated that Turner was taken to the hospital on Tuesday night after attending President Donald Trump’s address to Congress, where he was later pronounced dead.
A Remarkable Public Servant Elected:
Expressing his grief, Mayor Whitmire said:
“This comes as a shock to everyone. I ask Houstonians to come together, pray for his family, and join us in celebrating this remarkable public servant and his incredible life.”
He further added:
“No one really knows how close Sylvester and I were. We’ve been together in good times and bad. He asked me to speak at his mother’s funeral. I was there when [his daughter] Ashley was born, and he was there when my children, Whitney and Sarah, were born.”
Cause of Death Still Unknown :
The exact cause of Turner’s death is still unknown. However, he was diagnosed with bone cancer in 2022 and had undergone surgery and radiation treatment.
A Dedicated Leader:
Turner served as the Mayor of Houston from 2016 to 2024, guiding the city through Hurricane Harvey and the COVID-19 pandemic.
In November 2024, he was elected to represent Texas’s 18th Congressional District, succeeding the late Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, who passed away from pancreatic cancer in June 2024.
A Life Committed to Public Service:
A lifelong resident of Houston, Turner completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Houston before pursuing law at Harvard Law School.
He is survived by his daughter, Ashley Page Turner, and one grandson.
